Roche said Monday it got accelerated approval to Tecentriq (atezolizumab) plus chemotherapy for the treatment of adults with unresectable locally advanced or metastatic triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) in people whose tumours express PD-L1, as determined by an FDA-approved test.

Sandra Horning, MD, Roche’s Chief Medical Officer and Head of Global Product Development said the FDA approval of this Tecentriq combination is an important treatment advance for people with PD-L1-positive, metastatic triple-negative breast cancer, a disease with high unmet medical need.

She pointe out that this Tecentriq combination is the first cancer immunotherapy regimen to be approved in breast cancer, representing a meaningful step forward in the understanding of this disease.